Plaquemine cane producer Patrick Frischhertz in U.S. House Ag Committee Meeting Room Louisiana’s sugar farmers and millers have been producing a reliable source of America’s favorite ingredient for centuries but so have our foreign competitors. Our producers thrive in the face of adversity. We grow a profitable crop in nine months while the rest of the world has the luxury of a twelve-month growing season. We are some of the most efficient producers in the world and believe our farmers can compete with any farmer in the world. What our farmers cannot compete against is a foreign government. I ..read more

Casey Bean, American Sugar Alliance Trade Consultant A long-time veteran of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Casey Bean will join the American Sugar Alliance (ASA) as the organization’s trade consultant on May 1. Bean will work with ASA to analyze the complex global trade issues that impact U.S. sugar farmers and shape America’s no-cost sugar policy. With more than thirty years of experience working with the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), Bean’s work at FAS spans multiple regions across the globe including the countries of Bolivia, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Japan, Pakist ..read more

The Louisiana sugarcane industry has persevered for more than 225 years, even though it is a tropical crop is growing in a temperate environment. Growers regularly face a challenging climate, which includes the threat of early winter freezes before the crop is harvested. An early freeze can kill the sugarcane plant and cause the sugar (sucrose) inside of the stalk to deteriorate. Another challenge is the short seven-to-10-month growing season. Due to limited daily processing capacity at Louisiana’s 11 raw sugar factories, sugarcane harvest typically begins in mid-September. At the start of ..read more

Louisiana has been growing sugarcane and producing sugar for more than 200 years. Here’s how we do it. Raising Cane In Louisiana Tweet The post Raising Cane In Louisiana appeared first on American Sugar Cane League ..read more

Weed scientist Dr. Matt Foster of the LSU AgCenter discusses herbicide-resistant weeds in Louisiana sugarcane at the joint meeting of the American Sugar Cane League and the American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists in Baton Rouge in February 2024. Managing Herbicide-Resistant Weeds in Louisiana Sugarcane Tweet The post Managing Herbicide-Resistant Weeds in Louisiana Sugarcane appeared first on American Sugar Cane League ..read more

LSU AgCenter sugarcane breeder Collins Kimbeng stands amidst potential new sugarcane varieties, which are now seedlings at the AgCenter Sugar Research Station in St. Gabriel. Photo by Kyle Peveto/LSU AgCenter In a pocket of central Louisiana, a surprising crop for that area is taking root — sugarcane. Sugarcane, a tropical crop, has traditionally been limited to south Louisiana. But by using precision breeding techniques, LSU AgCenter researchers are developing sugarcane varieties that can withstand colder temperatures. Now, central Louisiana is home to the northernmost sugarcane fields in ..read more

Dr. Al Orgeron of the LSU AgCenter discusses sugarcane ripener response in the 2023 drought year at the Louisiana division meeting of the American Association of Sugar Cane Technologists in February 2024 in Baton Rouge. Sugarcane Ripener Response in a Drought Year Tweet The post Sugarcane Ripener Response in a Drought Year appeared first on American Sugar Cane League ..read more

Dr. Gillian Eggleston of the Audubon Sugar Insitute-LSU AgCenter discusses issues with starch in the sugarcane milling process at the Baton Rouge joint meeting of the American Sugar Cane League and the Louisiana division of the American Association of Sugar CAne Technologists in February 2024. Insoluble Starch Contributes to Lower Sugar Exhaustion from Molasses Tweet The post Insoluble Starch Contributes to Lower Sugar Exhaustion from Molasses appeared first on American Sugar Cane League ..read more

Dr. Patrick Ellsworth of the USDA-ARS Sugarcane Research Unit in Houma, La. presents research on the functions of the sugarcane root system at the Baton Rouge joint meeting of the American Sugar Cane League and the Louisiana branch of the American Society of Sugarcane Technologists in February 2024. Where does sugarcane get water? Tweet The post Where does sugarcane get water? appeared first on American Sugar Cane League ..read more

Dr. Kenneth Gravois at the 2024 Lafourche-Terrebonne LSU Sugarcane Growers Meeting Despite 2023’s drought, Louisiana’s landowners, sugarcane producers and millers continue to have confidence in sugarcane in 2024. Kenneth Gravois, the LSU AgCenter sugarcane specialist, is not surprised. “There are two factors for the continued increase in sugarcane production: increased acreage and better sugar production from third year and older cane stubble,” said Gravois. There are more than 500,000 acres devoted to sugarcane cultivation — the tenth straight year of expansion. The industry has been increas ..read more